BT is aggressively ramping up its wholesale deals, announcing yesterday that it has partnered with mobile carrier O2 that will allow it to offer fixed-line as well as mobile services to customers.
O2 was originally BT's mobile division, BT Cellnet, but was spun off in 2001 and acquired by Spain's Telefónica in 2006.
The initiative is part of O2’s new “one-stop” solution Joined Up, which will launch in October offering converged solutions for businesses of all sizes.
O2 business sales director Ben Dowd said the firm had already won some large corporate accounts, and it aims to be the number one communications integrator by 2012.
“We wouldn’t be entering this space if we didn’t feel there was a significant opportunity for us, which we absolutely do. With the combined strength of O2 and Telefónica it’s a big opportunity,” he said.
Recent O2 market research reveals nearly half of UK businesses have not reviewed their telecoms spending in the past two years, and according to O2 are probably not leveraging the best deal.
Under the terms of the agreement, BT Wholesale will provide O2 with fixed-line voice and data capabilities as a managed service, enabling O2 to offer mobile, fixed line and broadband professional consultancy services to customers.
O2 rival Vodafone recently unveiled its own fixed mobile convergence play also using BT to provide the fixed line capability.